A new study from the University of Kent has revealed that, despite people’s widespread beliefs that charities exist primarily to help the needy, the majority of donors tend to support organisations that promote their own preferences, help people they feel some affinity with and support causes that relate to their own life experiences.

Most people also base decisions on their perception of which charities are competent – including their being ‘well-run’, ‘efficient’ and with ‘low overheads’ – and their attempt to have the greatest impact or get the biggest 'bang for their buck'.

The study, which involved in-depth interviews with 60 committed donors, was conducted by Dr Beth Breeze, a researcher within the UK’s Economic and Social Research Council-funded Centre for Charitable Giving and Philanthropy (CGAP) and co-founder of the University of Kent's Centre for Philanthropy, Humanitarianism and Social Justice.

Other key findings include:

· Donors find it difficult to make choices between the vast number of potential beneficiaries; the overwhelming amount of choice makes it impossible to rationally assess all possible alternative destinations for donations
· Donors create their own classifications and 'mental maps' to try and cope with the complexity of the charity sector – for example making binary distinctions between 'animal' and 'people' charities, or automatically excluding certain types of causes
· Donors' personal backgrounds are a key criteria behind gifts; people draw on their personal and professional experiences and use their 'philanthropic autobiographies' to shape their giving decisions
· Donors often base their judgements on how efficiently charities spend their money by evaluating the quantity and quality of direct mail appeals, rather than by accessing information such as annual reports and accounts
· Donors are motivated by a desire to 'personally make a difference' and are keen to avoid their donations becoming a substitute for government spending

Prior to this study, more attention was paid to questions concerning how many donors give, how much they give, what sorts of people give and why people give, but there was little attention paid to the specific question of how donors in the UK choose which charities to support.

It is hoped that this report on donors’ meanings and motivations will increase the understanding of the distribution of charitable donations, and provide guidance on what it might take to change those patterns.

Beth Breeze said: ‘Donors retain an expectation that charities exist to serve the needy, yet in reality their own giving decisions are driven by many non-needs-based factors. Given the voluntary nature of charitable activity these findings are not actually that surprising, as the freedom to support things that people care most deeply about is what differentiates charitable giving from paying tax.

"Donors value the control they have over their charitable giving decisions, and expect to distribute their money according to their judgements about what is important and worthwhile. This raises a timely question about the extent to which the coalition government can realistically expect donations to plug any gaps that may result from public spending cuts on charitable activity."

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